Serbia’s government increased on Thursday its reward for the capture of Europe’s most wanted war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic from (EURO)1 million ($1.4 million) to (EURO)10 million ($14 million).

The government on Thursday also offered (EURO)1 million for the arrest of wartime Croatian Serb rebel leader Goran Hadzic, up from (EURO)250,000 ($350,000). The rewards were first announced in 2007.

Wartime Bosnian Serb army commander Mladic is accused by a U.N. war crimes court of organizing the massacre of up to 8,000 Muslim boys and men from Srebrenica in 1995 and besieging the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo for three years.

Hadzic is charged with crimes against humanity during Croatia’s war of independence from Yugoslavia from 1991-95.

Both are believed to be hiding in Serbia.

The U.S. has already offered US$5 million (EURO)3.6 million) for information leading to the arrest of Mladic.

The European Union said earlier this week that Serbia must bring the two war crimes suspects to justice if it wants to one day join the bloc.

October 28, 2010
Associated Press

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